


As the Paint Dries

by GhostGarrison



Category: Supernatural
Genre: AU, Asexuality, Fluff, M/M, Non-Sexual Intimacy, ace!sastiel, body painting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-18
Updated: 2014-09-18
Packaged: 2018-02-17 20:57:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2322941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GhostGarrison/pseuds/GhostGarrison
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam and Castiel don't need sex to be intimate. Sometimes it just takes a box of paint and paintbrushes and an evening to themselves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	As the Paint Dries

They don't do it often—good paint in a dozen colors that doesn't irritate Castiel's skin can rack up a not-so-pretty price—but when they do, it's one of Sam's most favorite activities.

This night has been planned for almost two weeks, both of them having the evening off with no responsibilities or prior obligations to worry about. With the schedule clear and the materials purchased, Sam and Castiel set out to have one of their treasured nights together—one that makes them feel a whole different level of intimacy above their usual touching and cuddling.

Sam lays out some rag towels on their queen sized mattress, covering it all again with a colorfully stained sheet, indicative of all the other nights they've done body painting. Each little blotch on the sheet is like a memory and the sight of it makes Sam smile.

He remembers the first time they did it—most of the stains came from that, where they were a little messy and accidentally rolled around a little too much.

He smiles at the purple stain, where it was one time that Sam actually tried to draw something that wasn't just a simplistic geometric design. He tried drawing the ace flag inside a spade shape across Castiel's shoulders but somehow easily failed and got purple everywhere, even in Cas' hair.

The red stain is from when they did this on the Fourth of July and Castiel tried turning Sam into one giant flag but fortunately didn't get too far without him figuring out his plans. That was a fun night, and Sam ended up with lots of little flags and stars across his arms before the night was over.

Castiel is up first, having gone second the last time they did this. He lays on his stomach, arms outstretched and bent over his head. Sam's eyes roam over the large expanse of tanned skin, a perfect canvas for him to use, smooth unblemished skin only broken up by his boyfriend's black boxer briefs.

Taking a large soft brush from the small supplies box from the closet, he begins painting vague abstract shapes on his boyfriend's back. Castiel flinches slightly as the cold paint hits his skin but relaxes into it after a few strokes. Sam never has a plan for what he paints, but almost every time, it develops into a rainbow of swirled lines and geometric shapes. He's no artist, but generally he thinks what he paints is beautiful in its own way.

Of course, that may just be because of the canvas it's on. Castiel is already beautiful all by himself. His boyfriend's chest shakes as he tries to keep down a laugh as Sam's brush reaches the sensitive skin of his thighs, tracing somewhat-parallel shapes down to his knees. Sam finishes off Cas' arms in a similar fashion, with triangles and circles connected by a swirling web of vine-like strokes.

When he's done, Castiel looks like a four year old child went to town on him with rainbow paint. But no matter what, he never shames Sam for his lack of artistic skills.

With every limb covered with now dried paint, Castiel gets up and crosses the room to inspect Sam's work using the floor-length mirror on the back of their bedroom door. He nods with approval, turning to Sam with a smile and thanking him.

Now it's Sam's turn, and every time they do this, he's always surprised with how good it feels. Not only does the cool paint feel good against his warm skin and the rhythmic strokes feel calming, but the fact that his boyfriend is painting no-doubt a beautiful mural across his back and legs just sets his heart aflutter. There's just something about body painting that makes Sam feel so much closer to Cas, like they're connecting on a different level than they usually do.

He absolutely adores the practice of body painting, loves every aspect of it. If he had his way, in the most ideal world, they'd do it every night. But of course, right now it's reserved for special occasions. Perhaps that is why it feels so special in the first place.

Castiel narrates what he's painting on Sam's back as he does it, each brush stroke deliberate and steady across his back. Cas works much quicker than Sam does, having a little more creative skill and aptitude than he does. He describes the mural as he paints, telling Sam that there's a beautiful lakeside with a colorful sunset beyond the dark trees of a forest. The lake and fish trail down his thighs and Castiel signs both of their names across his arms in a beautiful, almost calligraphic script.

When Castiel is done, he crawls on his hands and knees to lay on his stomach on the mattress next to Sam, keeping him close company while the paint dries. They lay as near as they can to one another, not quite touching fully along their sides in fear that the paint will rub and smear before its time. Thankfully, waiting for paint to dry is not as boring as watching paint dry.

Sometimes they talk while the paint dries, sometimes they don't. Sometimes it's just nice to loop their fingers together and hold a steady gaze, eyes doing all the talking for them. Tonight there's something deep in Castiel's blue eyes that portray something so strong that Sam feels it in his heart.

It's love, and it's particularly overwhelming tonight.

They wear the paint for an hour and Sam snaps a few pictures of pieces of their work, stashed away in a folder deep in his phone. Sam kisses Castiel deeply against the sheet-covered bed, now not caring if the paint chips or flakes now that it's immortalized by photograph.

Castiel is the one that ends up tugging them up off the bed and towards the shower, where they stand under the steaming hot water and wash the paint off each other in the spare moments between kissing. Sam relishes the touch he receives, Castiel's hands rubbing suds across his skin and washing his work away.

There's an immense feeling of satisfaction and peace that falls over them like a blanket when they're all clean and warm and wrapped up in each other in bed. Sam knows they don't need sex for intimacy, and to be honest? The method they found instead is a thousand times better.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr @ GhostGarrison


End file.
